Album Review: The Mountain Goats - The Life of the World to Come

The Mountains Goats are one of the most consistent outfits around despite having released seventeen albums over nearly twenty years, whether it’s the solo lo-fi of singer John Darnielle’s early work, or the denser material of the band’s second decade output. It’s a tribute to this consistency that each release has had its own unique character. While driven by Darnielle’s story-telling and empathy for his characters, the music also stands out in its own right, with strong melodies and increasingly assured instrumentation (even if his latest is more stripped back than the previous, underrated, Heretic Pride). The Life of World to Come was directly inspired by biblical verses, and carry their names – but the inspiration is not any sort of direct religious sense, but rather from a more literary way. But it’s the music which stands out – in particular the lovely arrangements (including string whiz Owen Pallett’s string score), and the increasingly assertive percussion of the legendary Jon Wurster (also of Superchunk).

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